Gov. Jerry Brown discusses the volatility of state funding during the release of his initial budget in January. The projected state surplus is at $4 billion and rising this year.
Rich Pedroncelli
The Associated Press

Gov. Jerry Brown discusses the volatility of state funding during the release of his initial budget in January. The projected state surplus is at $4 billion and rising this year.
Rich Pedroncelli
The Associated Press

California has a history of roller-coaster revenue, with tax collections climbing fast during good times and then flattening out just as quickly when the economy stalls. That’s why the state has suffered through a series of budget crises since the 1990s as governors and legislators have been forced to cut services whose costs were growing faster than the revenue needed to pay for them.

Complicating things this time around will be the requirements of Proposition 98, the voter-approved constitutional amendment that dictates school spending. That provision, if followed strictly, likely will require that nearly all of the new revenue coming into the budget be spent on kindergarten through community college education.

Brown has been wise to insist on a go-slow approach to spending as the economy has recovered. The governor has tried to focus on repaying debt, making good on the state’s obligations to local government, and prepaying commitments to public employee health and retirement benefits. He also is trying to build a reserve to guard against a future economic downturn.

All of these moves will serve the state well. But as he revises his budget and lawmakers enter into final negotiations over the spending plan, we would like to see the governor give more attention to the needs of lower-income and middle-income Californians.

He should consider restoring some of the health and welfare programs cut during the last recession and investing more in prevention programs that can keep Californians healthy. Brown also needs to find a way to avoid the tuition increase planned by the University of California.

Each of these things would require at least a modest increase in spending, and it looks as though the state will have the money to do that. But Brown also should look for creative ways to interpret the Proposition 98 mandate in order to free up some more money for non-education programs without increasing total state spending.

These are good times for California, and tax collections reflect that. This is as good a time as any to ensure that the least fortunate among us get the help they need to get by in this expensive state, and that all the children and young people of California have a chance to join in the state’s economic success.